New Years' Eve at Times Square
by chelszy
Summary: Kaoru spends New Years' Eve at Times Square. Alone. At first. One-shot


_I'm lazy. Just gonna use RK characters for now. I doubt I'll ever post this. But hey, it's one of the fluffiest things I've written. And I'm proud of it! Ah, how my stories reflect how I feel. _

"I'm going out now, Misao!" Kaoru called out, as she grabbed her coat from the hanger at the door.

Her energetic friend poked her head out of the living room door, where she was snuggling in with her boyfriend, Aoshi. "Are you sure, Kaoru?"

"Yeah, I thought I should just get a glimpse of Times Square, since it's the first New Year I'll be spending in New York." Kaoru hollered as she skimmed through the shoes in the shoe rack. Her eyes fell onto her favourite pair of boots. She reached for them.

"Do you need anyone to go with you?" Misao watched her friend go about with concern. If she had known that Kaoru would feel a sudden pang of loneliness now, she would have told Aoshi that they would have to skip spending New Years' Eve together. But she had been so perky this morning, going to the extent to emphasis that Misao spend the day with her long term boyfriend. She should have known that Kaoru had been hiding things from her.

"No Misao, I'll be fine." Kaoru looked up from tying the laces on her boot. The smile on her face was forced.

"I could call Megumi…"

"No! For all you know, she is probably at a secret rendezvous with Sano right now." Kaoru rarely used that tone with her. It was a tone that Misao knew she could never argue against.

Knowing that she had won, Kaoru turned and headed out. "I'll send you a happy new year message when it hits twelve, to let you know I'm safe. Bye Misao!"

With a sigh, Misao locked the door and returned to her place at the couch; where she was immediately embraced into warm, consoling arms.

"She is lonely." That statement held more truth than Kaoru herself would have admitted.

"Yes, Aoshi, she is." At times like this, Misao cannot help but appreciate how quickly she had met and hit it off with her lover. She just wished Kaoru would have better luck finding her own partner this year.

Downstairs, Kaoru blew on her cold fingertips before she put on her mittens and stepped out of the building. It was almost zero degrees, and the cold bit her down to the bone. Part of the cold probably resonates from the empty part of my heart too, she thought to herself. That was why she was so eager to get out of the apartment, in case she said something mean to the couple sitting before her.

Taking a left, she walked quietly to Times Square. Five minutes later, she caught sight of the shining crystal ball, held high up in the center of the Square.

It was two hours until midnight, yet the place was swarming with people. Mostly couples, actually. Here for the coveted first kiss of the New Year. The thought made her heart clench in pain. _Okay, clear your thoughts, girl. Don't think about it._

As she walked closer, it only got more and more crowded. After the fifth time someone slammed their shoulder into hers, she headed into the nearest shop entrance. Ducking in, she huffed in annoyance as she brushed imaginary dust from her bruised shoulder. _That hurt, jerk!_ She thought, rather viciously.

When she got over her anger to look around, she realized she was in a clothing store. _Ah well, might as well take a look around._

Just as she was browsing through the clothes on sale, frowning at how most of the wouldn't fit her petite form, a voice interrupted her thoughts.

"May I help you, Miss?"

She turned to tell him, nicely, that she didn't need help, when her voice got stuck in her throat.

The sales boy standing before her was watching her with violet eyes, set on a beautifully sculpted face. His hair was red as blood and he wore it long. Only slightly taller than her, he didn't have the huge torso or the muscled body of a typical mate protagonist. He definitely leaves much to be desired in the masculinity department. Yet, he was still eye catching in his own way. His uniform was a tad bit too large but he looked… pretty darn gorgeous.

"Miss?" Kenshin asked again, when the girl gave no indication of replying.

_The confused look is adorable on him_, Kaoru thought dreamily. _Oh crap, I was supposed to give him an answer!_

"I'm just looking around…"

"Well, is there anything you would prefer? I might be able to find it for you." Returning to protocol, Kenshin couldn't help but secretly admire the skin at the girl's throat as she swallowed. Her earlier appraisal of him hadn't escaped his notice either. He'd recently made a rule about employees hitting on customers… now what was it about again?

Gulping, Kaoru wrecked her brain was a good excuse. But a really big part of her didn't want to stop talking to the boy who was looking expectantly at her. "I… what would _you _prefer?" she suddenly blurted out on a whim.

Rapidly, she tried to remedy the situation, "I meant, what would you prefer on a girl?"

Then she flushed_, nice way to express your own interest, Kaoru!_

Instead of freaking out like she expected, the boy grinned.

"Well, on _you_, I would definitely prefer this number." With a flourish, the boy pulled out a dark blue dress with blowing sleeves, belted at the waist. It was… pretty decent, in Kaoru's opinion.

"Do you like it?" Kenshin asked carefully. If things were going to play out the way he wanted, he was going to have to choose his words carefully.

Her adorable question had already made the decision for him: he was going to abolish the "no hitting on customers" rule the next time he met his fellow shop managers.

"Yes… It is quite beautiful."

_Just like you are, miss,_ Kenshin imagined replying. Instead, he said, "I'm sure this size will fit you, Miss…"

"Oh, Kaoru."

"Miss Kaoru." He played her name on his tongue. He liked it there. He also liked the way her eyes widened and then darkened sexily in reaction to the way he said her name.

"Would you like to purchase it? Unfortunately, we do not have a changing room here, but you can easily…"

Shaking off dirty thoughts that involved a _lot _of name calling, Kaoru immediately interrupted him and gave him an affirmative. She could never really reject people, especially cute sales boys who turned bright, big, puppy dog eyes on you.

She was about to reach for her wallet, mentally crying at the number of meals she would have to eat at the convenience stall after this, when a large warm hand slid into hers, lacing their fingers together, squeezing lightly. Just as quickly, the feather touch was gone, leaving Kaoru staring in shock at the boy's retreating back.

He turned back once to shake her out of her reverie and beckon her to the counter. She could have sworn she saw flecks of yellow in those violet eyes.

She paid at the counter as Kenshin wrapped up her dress. Accepting her card with gracious ease, he thanked her for coming to their shop. Well_, his_ shop, actually. "My name is Kenshin, feel free to ask for me again next time you shop here. Happy New Year! Please accept this envelope as a complementary gift."

He winked at her as he returned her card and gave her the envelope. It contained the key to the roof and a little note, things he'd slipped in as she made her way to the counter. It was supposed to contain a voucher for her to redeem a bookmark at Half Price Books. But he didn't think it would be useful to her. Not as much as the keys would be, anyway.

She blushed until her cheeks glowed, gracing him with a shy smile before she turned and headed for the door. She stopped exactly ten steps from the counter. Oh, what Kenshin would give to see her expression just then! But someone had requested for his services, and by the time he turned back, Kaoru was already gone.

It was half an hour till midnight when Kenshin let the rest of his employees off to enjoy the New Year. He'd added a sign on the door entrance, "business resumes after midnight." Changing into his suit, he contemplated putting on the jacket. In fear of intimidating her, he decided against it, opting for a plain black jacket instead. _That is, if there was even anyone up there to intimidate, _he thought wistfully.

On a hunch, he decided grab two cups of hot chocolate from the machine in the manager's office.

As he turned the spare key to the roof in its lock, he muttered a word of prayer before he slowly eased the door open.

And God bless him, he narrowly avoided falling to his knees at the sight in front of him.

On the dimly lit rooftop, Kaoru sat at the small coffee table, her hair messed up by the buffeting wind. The light from nearby buildings and the New Year Ball threw shadows over Kaoru in such a way that it emphasized the feminine angles of her face and gave him the perfect image of her silhouette, as well as her messy hair.

He laughed, drawing her attention from trying to tame said hair. Moving forward, he graced her with what Sano calls, his "killer smile". Immediately, her expression turned suspicious. _Wrong move, Kenshin, _he berated himself.

But that didn't stop him from reaching out to help her smooth out that unruly hair. And to pass her a cup of hot chocolate.

Her expression changed to gratitude. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome… Kaoru. I was afraid you wouldn't be here."

She was already blushing furiously under his undivided attention. "Why did you ask me to come here, Kenshin?"

"Well, this place has a nice view, doesn't it? Great for watching the New Year Ball drop, with a cup of hot chocolate." He held his cup up for an imaginary toast.

To his surprise, she shyly rapped her cup against his. "Well, yes. That's true," Kaoru admitted, secretly thankful for the semi darkness. At least she could console herself that he probably didn't know the full extent of how flustered she actually was in his presence. It didn't help that this guy had the nerve to push all the right buttons, all in one night!

"I just thought, it might be a little lonely if a beautiful girl like you spends New Year's Eve alone."

Kenshin's statement made Kaoru look up from cradling her cup of hot chocolate. Their eyes met and he held her stare as he got up to stand in front of her, blocking most of the view of Times Square. Well, _she_ wasn't complaining.

"Of course, if you want me simply as a friend or something more, the choice is up to you." Then, he leaned forward, like a child revealing a very big secret, "Although, I would very much prefer the latter."

Shock instinctively made Kaoru, place her hands on his chest, and abruptly, Kenshin was gone, having moved to the railings, his expression hidden from her. He probably thought that was her rejection…

Biting her lip, Kaoru considered her options. This man was awfully considerate, beautiful and well, amazing. He could probably have any woman he chooses. Yet, this New Years' Eve, he wanted her: Plain old Kaoru, who was a tomboy, with nothing to offer him!

While her mind raced through all that she didn't know about him, a majority of her wondered how he would solve the problems between them. Would he do it with the same ease and efficiency as he captured her attention? Another more thoughtless part of her just wanted to stare into those eyes, find out why and when those elusive flecks of amber appear and… _Ah, hell._

Taking a deep breath, Kaoru decide to take a leap of faith. She came forward, hugging him from the back. She felt him tense slightly then relax, before his hand fell over hers. He laced their fingers together, pressing her hand to his stomach, with something akin to desperation, until she could feel the strong contours there. At that moment, Kaoru was free of worries about their future. And happy, for the first time in months, to savour in the moment.

Sometime later, Kenshin spoke again, "I'll take that as a 'yes'?"

Heart beating in her ears, Kaoru nodded.

She'd prepared herself for a variety of reactions, except what he did next.

He turned around and scooped her up into his arms so quickly, she barely registered the sudden weightlessness before she felt the warmth of his lips against hers. She remembered thinking that his nose was a little too cold, that she liked the way his lips slid sensuously against hers, until he introduced her to his tongue and teeth too. Then she forgot everything but Kenshin.

They pulled away just as Kaoru heard cheering. The New Year Ball had already fallen! "How?" she gaped up at Kenshin. If it were possible, his self-satisfied grin made him even more pleasing to the eye.

She would have been happy to continue gaping at him if he hadn't ignored her question.

"Happy New Year, Kaoru. I look forward to having a lot more memories together with you, this year."

Then he kissed her again, until she forgot to scold him for evading the question.


End file.
